초록
A mathematical model was established for estimating changes in pressure and volume of permeable kimchi packages. The model comprises the CO2 gas production from kimchi and permeation of O2, CO2 and N2 through the permeable film or sheet. Using the developed model, the effects of various packaging variables on the pressure and volume changes were analyzed for rigid and flexible packag es of kimchi(3% salt content) at 15oC, and then effect of storage temperature was also looked into. In case of rigid pack of 400g, using the plastic sheet of high CO2 permeability and initial vacuumizing can help to relieve the problem of pressure build up. The lower fill weight can further reduce the pressure, but will result in higher packaging cost. For the flexible package of 3 kg, highly permeable films such as low density polyethylene(LDPE) and polypropylene can reduce the volume expansion. Higher ratio of CO2 permeability to O2 and N2 permeabilities are effective in reducing the volume expansion. Increased surface area cannot contribute to reduction of volume expansion for highly permeable flexible packages of kimchi. For the impermeable packages, pressure and volume at over ripening stage (acidity 1.0%) increase with decreased temperature, while those at optimum ripening stage(acidity 0.6%) change little with temperature. Pressure of permeable rigid LDPE package increases with tem perature at any ripening stage, and temperature affects the volume of flexible LDPE package very slightly. Experimental verification of the present results and package design with economical consid eration are needed as a next step for practical application.